TAKING ACTION
US Navy is replacing stealth destroyers’ guns with hypersonic MISSILE launchers after vessel chased by Russia warship
THE NAVY will be replacing guns on its destroyers with hypersonic weapons after one of its destroyers was chased by a Russian warship.
The U.S. Navy announced it will begin converting its Zumwalt class destroyers to fire the "Intermediate-Range Conventional Prompt Strike" weapons, aka IRCPS, in the 2024 Fiscal Year.
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The IRCPS hypersonic weapons will be replaced the 155mm Advanced Gun Systems on the stealthy destroyers, making them a viable opposing force at sea.
In 2016, the Navy decided to stop buying ammo for the guns, citing exponentially rising costs for ammo and calling the weapons essentially dead weight.
The hypersonic missiles instead will be replacing the guns, which will be loaded onto the ship's triple-packed Advanced Payload Module canisters.
"The Navy began engineering planning efforts to accommodate integration of CPS on Zumwalt-class destroyers," the Navy's Office of the Chief of Information spokesperson Lieutenant Lewis Aldridge .
"Which includes removal of advanced gun system mounts and installation of Advanced Payload Module (APM) launcher technology," he added.
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The Navy currently has two Zumwalt destroyers in service, the USS Zumwalt and the USS Michael Monsoor, that are being retrofitted. The third ship, the USS Lynddon B. Johnson, is currently being remodeled.
The military agency has yet to confirm how many IRCPS missiles will be carried aboard the destroyers at once.
It did however alude that two weapons can take the place of each AGS turret, meaning up to 12 weapons can be stored aboard the ship.
The news comes as the United States tested a hypersonic weapon system with strike capability after China reportedly flew a terrifying nuke right around the Earth.
It also comes after Russia claimed it chased off a Navy vessel, which the Navy has since denied.
On October 15, the USS Chafee and the Russian destroyer, the Admiral Tributs, were within 65 yards of each other, both militaries admitted, but the Navy has denied it was chased away, but rather, decided to keep moving.
This comes after the US Navy Strategic Systems Programs conducted their first hypersonic weapon system test in August in Promontory, Utah.
On October 17, reported that 'tested a nuclear-capable hypersonic missile in August that circled the globe before speeding towards its target, demonstrating an advanced space capability that caught US intelligence by surprise."
It was also reported this China is stockpiling its missile load, apparently seeking to amass over 1,000 missiles in just a few years time.
To make matters worse, the fears of an impending doomsday are rising after Chinese aircraft flew through Taiwan's airspace.
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